I Ascend to the Divine Throne through Arcane Means

Chapter 539: Chapter 383: Lost Underworld Floating City_2

In front of Lis, a vast chasm spanned across the underworld, crafted by nature’s hand like a giant tapestry, revealing boundless ancient grandeur and mystery.

The hollow was like an inverted stone bowl, with smooth rock surfaces that seemed as if the layers below had been completely devoured by a special force.

In the midst of the void, a blue Floating City stood in silence, its lower half submerged in the dark waters at the base of the hollow, resembling a bustling city upon the water. The Floating City was aglow with streaming colors and points of light, soft yet mysterious, as if stars had fallen to become the city’s lanterns. These lights interwove in the gloom to paint a vibrant tapestry, casting the Floating City in a dreamlike haze.

Is this the Azela Floating City?

The area of the hollow was much larger than the island above, and Lis estimated that the Floating City in front of him was about the size of Danerluo Port.

Standing in the crevice of the rock wall, Joyce and Lis appeared as insignificant as ants before this colossal structure.

Lis quietly observed the Floating City before him, his spirit thoroughly entranced.

Feeling the tranquility and mystery emanating from the silent Floating City, a sense of inexplicable reverence and yearning surged within him.

Hu~

After calming his emotions briefly, Lis silently surveyed the Azela Floating City in its entirety.

The Floating City was primarily composed of two parts: the central area was a Magic City built on an inverted mountain, which was the main body of the Floating City, occupying most of the area. One could vaguely make out the orderly architecture arranged in a circular formation, guarding the core tower at the center.

Beyond that, eight Floating Islands were symmetrically distributed and connected to the central Floating City by massive bridges, with different architectural facilities on each island.

In the core area of the Floating City, a tall azure tower stood majestically, the most striking feature of the entire city. This tower was covered with a layer of azure Crystal Stones, faintly shimmering with Magic Light, refracting a dazzling radiance.

From bottom to top was a solid and broad base, cylindrical layers of the tower, and a combination of conical and semi-circular tower tops. The tower’s structural design was ingenious and unique, narrowing elegantly as it rose, creating a streamlined design. Complex Magic Runes seemed to be carved on it, with pale blue light flowing between them as if alive, leaping and flickering.

The tower’s spire was notably compelling, sharp and lofty, as if piercing the heavens. At its apex was set a massive blue gemstone, twinkling with bright light, as if a true star was embedded there, illuminating the entire hollow.

Around the high tower were numerous orderly smaller buildings. The design of these buildings must have been deliberately planned, modest in size but exquisitely crafted, presenting a unified style that perfectly mirrored the central tower.

Around the Floating City, diverse and distinctive buildings were distributed atop the eight symmetric Floating Islands, each presumably serving a different purpose.

Lis could only recognize the two symmetric Floating Islands on either side as the city’s Airports, a design akin to port docks, likely intended as landing points for airships to board the Floating City.

From the outside, one could only garner such information; the entire Floating City seemed more like an extravagantly beautiful dreamlike city, the quintessence of human wisdom.

But even this was enough to stir Lis’s heart and intensify his eagerness to take control of this Floating City.

Besides the bright blue gemstone atop the Floating City’s tower, many specks of Magic Light twinkled throughout, indicating the Floating City was indeed still operational.

At this thought, Lis suddenly paused and turned to look behind.

Behind him was the path he and Joyce had traversed, the same dark cavern.

Lis tried stepping back a few paces, and sure enough, after that familiar sensation, the Floating City suddenly vanished, leaving only the deep darkness.

Moving forward once more, Lis nearly guessed the situation.

It must be the Floating City’s camouflaging stealth capability, keeping the Floating City perpetually hidden; thus, his previous explorations had yielded no results.

Considering this, his great-grandfather must have been extremely fortunate to have discovered this place.

If not for that, this Floating City would not have remained here for thousands of years, silently recounting its former glory.

Right, this special ability, could it be the legendary “Mystery Lock”?

“Mystery Lock” is a permanent Magic Barrier or Domain created by Legendary Level Spells, believed to be high magic crafted by Elves to protect certain entities, though later this ability was not exclusive to the Elves.

The powers within a “Mystery Lock” Barrier vary, shaped by the original creator’s design and construction when establishing it. It could house permanent Spells, updateable Spells, and could disable certain Spells, but the primary capability of a “Mystery Lock” is still its stealth and cloaking abilities.

“`

Just like the Floating City before their eyes demonstrated.

Although Lis had learned about Mystery Locks from the Judgement Flame, it was unfortunate that his teacher didn’t have more detailed content and construction methods.

He never expected to encounter it here!

“Little Lis, how is it?”

Joyce was smiling as he looked at Lis, then he said,

“When Brandon and I first came here, we were also shocked, truly never expecting that such a magnificent Floating City would be beneath this tiny island.”

“Yes, when I saw it, I even felt somewhat insignificant.”

Lis nodded, not hiding his own feelings.

Perhaps this was the spiritual shock that wonders bring?

“Alright, let’s go!”

Joyce didn’t say much more, grabbed Lis’s shoulder, and dived into the shadows.

The next moment, Joyce and Lis’s figures appeared atop a Floating Island on the left side of the Floating City, the one that Lis had noticed before: the airport.

Having stepped onto the Floating City, Joyce’s expression became much more serious, and he said to Lis,

“From now on, listen carefully to everything I say, remember it.”

“This is the intelligence that your great-grandfather started gathering, and that all of us obtained through exploring this Floating City.”

“Even though you are already a Gold Level Arcanist, don’t be complacent; you should know your great-grandfather died from the severe injuries he sustained here in the Floating City.”

“I understand, Uncle Joyce.”

Lis nodded, he still held a sense of reverence in his heart for this Floating City.

“Hmm, this time you’re following me, but if you want to come here in the future, you’ll have to do it alone.”

Joyce said in a serious tone, then started to introduce the place to Lis,

“Our current location is within the Floating City’s airport; this is the safest part of the Floating City. Everywhere else requires caution.”

“The various magic traps within the Floating City are mostly inside the buildings, and there are almost none on the outdoor roads.”

“Instead of calling them defensive mechanisms of the Floating City, they are more likely the private arrangements made by mages who lived in those buildings and rooms before.”

“Is it safe to walk outside, then?”

“That’s not the case, you’ll see in a little while.”

Joyce said with a smile.

The two continued walking forward, and Lis carefully observed the style of the surrounding buildings; the straight and broad roads were flanked by buildings of a similar style. What intrigued him was that every house’s walls bore similar magic runes and circuits, though their purposes were unknown.

However, here was different from the distant tower; the enchantment rune circuits on these buildings were extremely dim, making them almost indiscernible for Lis.

Meanwhile, as Lis and Joyce advanced, Lis noticed that not all buildings on the Floating Island were intact. Many were in a state of disrepair, with some completely destroyed, leaving only remnants of walls and ruins.

It seemed like what the system task had hinted at a short while ago; the outer area of the Floating City was seriously damaged. Looking at the traces, it seemed as though it was attacked by others from the outside?

Lis buried the doubts in his heart, while listening to Joyce recount the explorations he and his father, Brandon, once had here.

At that moment, a black shadow suddenly sprang onto Lis’s shoulder.

“`